The two men from Akron paid $100 cover to get into the Cobalt Lounge. They got into an argument with some people in Lewis’ entourage.

Lewis had been living like the young superstar he was. He got around all week in a 40-foot limo rented for $3,000 a day. He made an appearance at a sporting good store the day before the game. A couple of friends took the occasion to buy knives.

The hard feelings were taken outside the lounge. The limo sped away. It was drenched in forensic evidence, though Lewis’s white suit was never found.

Witnesses said the limo pulled over and dumped a bloody laundry bag in a garbage bin. The limo driver testified that Lewis told everyone to “just keep your mouth shut and don’t say nothing.”

Lewis was charged with murder and aggravated assault. Prosecutors reduced it to a misdemeanor charge of obstructing justice. In return, Lewis testified against two friends, Reginald Oakley and Joseph Sweeting.

They eventually were acquitted. So the killers still are out there. Atlanta police never made any more arrests in the case.

Smith was Lollar’s fiancé. She gave birth to Lollar’s daughter, India, a month after his death.

The bottom line is very few people know who did what that night. Lewis has always maintained his innocence. Whether he was a bystander or not, he was undoubtedly in the wrong place at a very wrong time.

The NFL fined him $250,000. Lewis had O.J. Simpson’s image. The difference is his NFL career was still ahead of him. And what a career it would turn out to be.

Lewis may have been the most boisterous player in the NFL history, though he rarely spoke about that night in Atlanta. When he did, he said it changed his outlook on life. That happens when you see your life flash before a grand jury’s eyes.

To what extent it fueled the bonfire inside him, only Lewis knows. He started a foundation to help disadvantaged youth. He became a lay preacher. Nobody performed on Sundays like the Ravens’ middle linebacker.

Once toxic, Lewis became an endorser for Visa and Old Spice. The face of NFL shame made the cover of Madden NFL 2004.

It was the greatest redemption story in NFL history for one reason—it had to be. Otherwise, the testimonials wouldn't have been quite so glorious Wednesday.

Lewis deserves the praise. People can decide for themselves whether he deserves complete forgiveness. All I know is after the requisite five-year wait, he’s a lock to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer.

Lewis will take the stage and give one of the most rousing acceptance speeches Canton, Ohio, has ever heard. He’ll be handed the yellow jacket and wave to countless fans.

And somewhere, Kellye Smith will wonder what happened to the white suit.